GeekyDane

“Mama, it is only a few hours. We will get home again before it starts raining. Papa, tell her.” Emily sent her father a stare that only puppies could do better. With her lower lip poking out and her hands ready for a prayer. Your uncle sighed and finally let go of the newspaper he wasn’t reading anyway.

“Make sure to be home for y/n’s dance lessons this afternoon.” He just said and it almost looked like aunt Laura’s jaw would drop down in the plate, if that was physically possible.

“Thank you papa!” Your cousin ran to her father and kissed him on the cheek.

“Albert!” Aunt Laura exclaimed, but your uncle laid his hand over hers to calm her and she huffed.

“I will be back for the dancing, I promise. I’m sorry you can’t come with us but do give my best regards to Mr. Davies.” Your cousin almost jumped out the door and you could hear her calling for her maid somewhere else in the building. You sighed silently. It felt like you hadn’t been leaving the house since you got to London. You had only had a few outing for shopping and you had been visiting the Bridgertons once more since Anthony invited you the first time. Not that he was anywhere near the tea room the second time. You were not even sure he was in the building, but you didn’t want to ask for him. It was Lady Bridgerton who had officially invited you both times, so it would only be rude to ask for anyone else than the host.

“How are the lessons going? Mr. Davies says you are doing well on the piano, but Mrs. Greaves is a bit… sceptical.” You uncle was generous. You had heard the reports Mrs. Greaves had given him and your two left feet were kind of offended. You didn’t think you were that bad, but of course you didn’t have anyone to compare yourself with. Your cousin was kind of clumsy too, but that was because she had to dance like a man, which she of course wasn’t use to.

“It’s just a lot harder than I expected. I don’t think I will ever be a good dancer, maybe a decent one. On a good day.” You mused and it made your uncle chuckle behind the great moustache of his.

“I wish I could give you some more time, because I’m sure you would be excellent. You might have to use a bit more of your charm. But that comes naturally when you are a Bradley.” He said proudly. You smiled at him. He was so caring and even though you didn’t see him much doing the day, you could feel he got your back in a whole other way your aunt had. She was very determining to marry you off to the best of the ton along with her daughter. You admired her dedication and the fact that they spend money on your lessons. But you hadn’t really considered marriage before moving to London and your aunt put it on your mind. You couldn’t imagine you being someone’s wife and live a married life. All you knew before your time in your uncle and aunt house was the life of a traveling printer and his daughter. You were ready to step in and help him and were used to actually use your hands for working. But you knew that your uncle and aunt wouldn’t even let you near The City where the printing businesses may be. No, you should stay in Mayfair or at least Bloomsbury. Your world had become so small in only a a month and you still had a hard time figuring out how to deal with it all. You did what was expected of you, but as the date of your official debut I London society grew closer, it formed a knot in your stomach. It felt wrong. Nothing of this is what you ever wanted, but coming to think of it, you never really had any wild plans for your life. You had known one thing and that was your dad. Maybe you should start to think about what you really wanted and not just what was expected and what happened in the past. You just had to figure that out while learning the pianoforte and dancing waltz.

You were sat at the pianoforte and watched Mr. Davies figures go over the instrument. You had trouble with a piece but what made you fail repeatedly was Mrs. Greaves walking back and forward in the empty ball room, knocking her cane hard against the floor for every step. It was both distracting and unnerving.

“Where is that girl?” Said Mrs. Greaves grimly as she passed you yet again.

“They might just be running late.” You said for the fifth time. Emily hadn’t shown up for your lessons as promised and it had been raining like a hurricane since she left. Aunt Laura was running around concerned and you were almost grateful for your teachers to take you away from that. You were sure that she was almost ready to call upon the police to search for Emily.

“It is a waste of my time!” Mrs. Greaves exclaimed and you mimed her words as she said it, as that was also fifth time she said exactly that. Mr. Davies coughed to hide a chuckle. You were lucky that you both sat with your back turned to her. Also immediately after came a footman into the room. You all watched him go from one end of the gigantic ballroom to reach you in the bottom.

“Miss Bradley, your aunt sent me to tell you that she sent the other Miss. Bradley to bed. She doesn’t want her to catch a cold.” He bowed for you all and went on his way again. You sighed out loud. It was as expected when you saw the weather.

“I knew it! A complete waste of my time! I hope your uncle doesn’t think he will get this day for free. I will take my leave!” Mrs. Greaves stormed out as fast as her old legs could bear. The sound of the cane echoed throughout the room and she slammed the door behind her. What a temper.  

“If you don’t mind, I can stay the hours and we can go over this part again. I have more nodes in my briefcase if you want to change song too.” Mr. Davies offered and you nodded immediately. The song would absolutely haunt your mind, if you didn’t end up getting it right.

“Thank you Mr. Davis. If we can finish this song at least, I won’t tell my uncle that you left early.” You said and you both smiled knowingly at each other.

Not an hour later there was a knock on the door. You were in the middle of a song and you didn’t want to stop. You concentrated hard on the notes in from of you, so Mr. Davies was the one to ask the visitor to come inside. You could faintly hear the footman announcing the arrival of the guest, but your music was too loud for you to actually hear who it was.

“Lord Bridgerton. How good to see you.” Mr. Davies said and THAT caught your attention. You missed a few notes and made the poor instrument screech, but tried your best to try a finish the piece. The two men walked up to you while talking. You tried your hardest not to focus on them and make your heart slow down. Why was it even beating so hard all of the sudden? It was loud in your ears and it was as distracting as Mrs. Greaves damn cane. You took a deep breath and continued playing. The men stopped to your right and had stopped talking. With the most grace you could master, you finished the song with only a few mistakes. You let out the breath you forgot you had been holding.

“Miss. Bradley. You are getting better.” Anthony simply said. What an odd greeting.

“Thank you, my Lord.” You finally looked up at him and he nodded at you with a small smile. “And… and for what did I earn your company today?”

“I was made aware of your cousin and my sister’s adventure today. It seems like they were caught in a storm doing their outing.” He explained.

“Yes, so I’ve heard. Mrs. Greaves went home as soon we heard actually, so I am using the time to practice the pianoforte, as you saw.” You couldn’t avoid letting your confusion show. Your cousins outing had nothing to do with the Lord.

“That I did. But I thought you might still want to learn the dances. And since your cousin is not here, I thought I might use some of my free time to make myself available. I was, after all, the one that allowed my sister to drag your cousin along today.” He raised his eyebrows at you and you guessed it was because you looked as surprised as you felt. Should you dance with The Lord Bridgerton? You put a hand over your heart, as it suddenly sped up and you weren’t sure how you were even surviving that.

“My lord. It’s very kind of you but…”

“It certainly is, isn’t it? Come. Mr. Davies will play the piano for us.” He said, gesturing to Mr. Davies who looked as surprised at you. But the gesture woke him up.

“Certainly. Certainly, Lord Bridgerton. I will see to it.” The older man said and wobbled over to the grand instrument and sat down on the stool next to you again. Anthony now turned to you.

“You are dancing the Quadrille at the moment, if I am correct?” He said and reached his arm to you. You stared at it for a moment before taken it and let him take you away from the comfort you found in being seated and with your back turned halfway to him. Now you actually had to look at him. Look at those beautiful eyes. You caught yourself in a thought and looked away.

“How did you know?” This time it was you who caught Anthony off guard. He cleared his throat.

“I… I’m sure my sister must have mentioned it, after speaking with your cousin. They are, after all, very close and I believe they tell each other everything.” He mused. He led you away from the piano and you let go of his arm to stand in front of him in perfect dance position.

“Are you sure you can teach me, my Lord? It is a dance for four couples and I already have a hard time imagining the last six people.” You didn’t want to sound doubtful of his ability to dance, but you already had the hardest time with the dances that included more than two people. Emily had the luxury to learn the dances along with others when she was younger and you were sure Anthony had too. But Mrs. Greaves wouldn’t put you in a class for people half your age, because that would make people talk. Your aunt of course agreed on that one.

“I’ll admit, it will not be easy, but I can see that you already know the basics.” He said and placed himself in positon as well. With one foot in front of the other and one hand behind his back he stood elegantly. With his cocky smile the only thing that could make him look more like royalty was the crown. Was that even allowed?

“I know very little, but I do know how to stand. It’s as soon as I start moving it will end horribly.” This made the man sputter and laugh out loud. Mr. Davies started coughing in the background too. You felt kind of proud of yourself that you were able to make Anthony laugh like that, even though it wasn’t very gentlemanly to laugh on a woman’s expense.

“I guess I never calculated your wit. It is very refreshing. I do apologize for laughing though.” He explained and composed himself again, but the smile never left his face.

“Apology accepted, my lord. Now, will you teach me to dance?” You said and lifted your chin as a suggestion. Anthony waved at Mr. Davies that turned around to the pianoforte and started playing. Anthony started by bowing to you and you curtsied. You both turned so you had the front the same way and you lifted your left hand for him to take. He smirked at you and you remembered that it was the man who was supposed to lift his hand first. Without thinking you sucked in a breath as he gently curled his fingers around your ungloved hand. He guided you back and forward while mumbling the steps.

“Two step and take the gentleman’s hand. Walk pass him. I take your hand behind your back.” You walked pass the invisible gentleman and moved your right hand to your back and felt Anthony grab both your hands and turning you both around. You stood so close like that, that it almost scared you when his voice was just next to your ear.

“Now we walk pass the other two couples in a circle.” He almost whispered and led you around in a circle. You made sure to time your steps with his until you stopped again. It continued like this, Anthony giving you small directions. Letting your hand go to the invisible gentleman and give you a big smile when you placed your hand back in his. He led you around a second time and you two looked at each other with a little laugh. It felt silly but much better than when you and your cousin can marched around clumsily as Emily wasn’t use to lead and you had no idea where your dance partners were supposed to stand. At least Anthony gave you a sense of direction. It might still not have been the most elegant dance you had ever danced, but it felt much easier following Anthony.

You watched him spin around himself with the three other invisible gentlemen before he joined you in the outer circle and spun you around. You couldn’t help but giggle when your dress flew a little in the spins and turns.

“Now we walk forward. Bow to the couple in front of us. Walk backwards. Now turn to me.” With Anthony’s hand holding yours high, you turned to him and your eyes locked. You saw the corner of his mouth twitch. The piano music had stopped and you were just standing there, staring at each other. It wasn’t an awkward moment but a precious moment you knew you would remember for a long time. You had never been so close to a man before.

“What now, my Lord?” You asked under a breath, as he didn’t say anything.

“May I compliment your eyes?” He said and it startled you.

“I don’t think you need permission to compliment someone, my… my lord.” You surprised yourself that you were even able to speak in that moment. What was he about? You could feel his thumb caressing your hand that he was still holding so gently, that you had almost forgotten that you were holding hands.

You were brought back to the reality when Mr. Davies coughed very loudly from behind the pianoforte and you both jumped half a step away from each other. Anthony, however, didn’t let go of your hand.

“And now I bow.” He let go of your hand so that you could curtsy as well.

“You did that very well, Miss Bradley. I will be looking forward to see you dance at the debutante ball.” You both glanced to Mr. Davies who was busying himself by packing away his node sheets.

“It was very nice of you to come to my aid. It really improved my dancing.” You thanked him and he nodded. He did indeed also look a little proud of himself.

“No worries. I had a few hours to spare. Which remind me, I think I must take my leave soon.”

“You have business to tend to.” It was not a question but a bold statement from you. He blinked.

“Yes. Of course. Miss Bradley. Mr. Davies.” He greeted and you watched him leave the ballroom yet again. You looked to Mr David who finished packing his briefcase. He gave you a knowing look.

“You need to watch out for that one.”

“Pardon?”

“His reputation is not the best. He is a scarmer. A rake. It would suit you to find someone else to dance with at the ball.” He explained further. You didn’t believe what you were hearing.

“I thought you liked Lord Bridgerton?”

“Oh I do. I have known him since he was a young lad. But that doesn’t mean that I would let him close to my daughter.” He said and raised an eyebrow. “Good day to you, Miss Bradley. I will see you again in a few days.” And with that the old man took his leave and left you wondering how someone as sweet as Anthony Bridgerton could have a bad reputation.

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Mr. Davies was a phenomenal teacher and knew exactly how to get you to understand. With the approval of your uncle, Mr. Davies wrote the notes on the keys, so you remembered what was what. You weren’t able to play much without looking down yet, which made it hard to read the sheets of music as well.

“You need to trust your fingers are going to the right keys, Miss Bradley. You have too many pauses.” He said again and again. It frustrated you that you had to start over again and again.

It was starting to get late and Mr. Davies was on his way home. You stayed at the pianoforte as you saw him leave. When he went out the door you turned to the stupid instrument again and sighed. You had been butchering Beethoven all day and you wanted to get at least the first part of Zur Namensfeier right. Mr. Davies kept saying it should be fairly easy and that just made you mad. Why couldn’t you just do it right? Trust your fingers. You shook your head and looked at the keys. You placed your fingers on the start notes and looked to the sheet. You could read the notes, so you just needed to translate it to the fingers.

You started playing and you let your body move with the rhythm. Left and right as you pressed the keys down in front of you. You came to the part that had given you trouble all day and of course… You clumsily pressed down two keys next to each other at the same time. You hammered both fists into the keys, making the whole room echo with the screeching sound from the poor pianoforte.

“Is the instrument okay?” You heard a laughing voice behind you. You quickly turned to the voice and once again found Viscount Bridgerton walk towards you in your practice hall. But this time he came alone. He walked with confident strides and with his arms hidden on his back.

“Are you mocking me, my lord?” You asked slight annoyed.

“Not at all. I was just walking down the hall when I heard the abuse of a musical instrument. My curiosity got the best of me.”

“Well that torture is the best I can do. It doesn’t seem like I will learn this either.” You huffed and hid your face in your hands. This was terrible. You would never be able to learn before the start of the season and now you had an audience for your lack of talent. It truly felt like the world was against you.

“Is it correct guessed, that you might not have had lessons growing up?” Lord Bridgerton, Anthony, walked forward and stood beside the pianoforte, so you couldn’t escape his gaze. You side eyed him, as you didn’t know how to takes his comment. It felt like mockery but he wore an expression of sincerity.

“No. I did not.” You said a bit defensibly. You didn’t need a man with a title to make you feel bad. You were perfectly good at that yourself. You didn’t care that your voice hinted your annoyance with the man. He cleared his throat.

“It is just… Your uncle told me about your father. The topic came up quite naturally after our little encounter last time I was here.” He went on. What was he trying to say? Was he going to make fun of your father? Those wounds weren’t healed in any way and you wouldn’t listen to anyone who would say one single bad word about your father. But Anthony went on.

“I didn’t know he was doing…” Anthony stopped and you glanced at him.

“What? Manual labour?” You suggested and stood up from the piano bench and scooted out from behind the instrument. The viscount looked panicked and stepped closer before you could walk away.

“I was going to say printing. I understand he was a printer in many different countries.” He said with a frown.

“Yes. He was.”

“I knew your uncle had a brother, as they were both friends with my father. But I didn’t know Lord Bradley had a niece. I wouldn’t have imagined he would have any children when he moved around so much. Your childhood must have been very different from the childhood of my siblings and me. I wasn’t trying to mock you, miss Bradley. I’m just trying to understand.” He rushed his words like he would make sure you got it all before you potentially were leaving the room. You appreciated how keen he was to not hurt your feelings. You realized that he didn’t have any bad intentions. He was merely making small talk.  

“I have seen most of Europe, yes. I followed where my father went and he himself tough me how to read and write. But he was never much for big parties and therefor I never went myself.” You explained. You didn’t know why you were telling him such personal details but it seemed like he already knew quiet a lot from your uncle and it was him who started the conversation.

“Then your father and I have something in common. But I actually have to attend the parties.” He said and dared a small smile. You felt yourself blush when the smile was directed towards you.

“Right now I wished we had gone to those parties. I never had any needs to learn how to dance or being able to perform on any instrument. You must think me completely incompetent.” You huffed.

“Not at all. Your talents lay elsewhere. Just like my sister, Eloise. Have you met her?”

“I have barely left this room since I got to London.” You explained.

“Your cousin is actually a good friend of my sister and often comes over for tea in the afternoon. You should see my mother when your cousin was occupied with your dance lessons and couldn’t come. My mother loves having guests over and pamper them with attention. You should come along with your cousin one day.” He said rather excitingly.

“Are you inviting me for tea, my lord?” You said cheekily. He looked to his feet for a moment and then up at you again. He wore an expression of indecision. The change was quite sudden.

“Not quite. I’m inviting you on behalf of my mother. I am usually not at home for teatime.” Well that was unfortunate. You had a feeling that you might enjoy a longer conversation with him.

“What a shame.”

“I usually have business to attend to.” He explained, sounded a little apologetic.

“Of course.” You didn’t know what else to say. You hadn’t any rights to know what he did all day. But you started to wonder how much this young Lord had to do in a day and why he was even a Lord. He wasn’t that much older than you by looks, but if he was bearing a title and had responsibilities that required him to be away from his home all day, it meant that his father wasn’t in his life anymore. Just like you. You wondered why he didn’t bring it up in the conversation, but you didn’t want to pry. You looked questionably at the Viscount as he just stood there. Not furthering the conversation, but just started back at you with a lovely smile spreading on his lips. But it was like something suddenly came to his mind and he frowned.

“I was actually just on my way. I don’t want to take more of your time.” He suddenly said and quickly nodded at you and started to walk towards the still open double doors that he came through. He stopped half way there and turned towards you, but didn’t meet your eyes.

“Do remember the invitation. My mother will be expecting you.” He commented and again was on his way. What a strange behaviour.

As Anthony had promised, an invitation for you and your cousin arrived next morning. Your aunt was confused why the Bridgertons were suddenly sending and invitation, as your cousin just always went there uninvited, as the afternoon tea was rarely anything official. What was even stranger was the fact that you were invited. Your Aunt Laura was sure she might have mentioned your arrival to Lady Bridgerton when meeting her on a morning walk, but you had never been formally introduced. You kept to yourself, that it was Anthony Bridgerton that had invited you, as you didn’t want your family to ask any questions about why the two of you might have been alone together in more than one occasion.

“I’m sure she just wants to meet y/n. We do live on the same street and y/n hasn’t been much outside the house since she got here.” Your cousin explained to your aunt and uncle at the breakfast table.

“But she usually doesn’t send an invitation. You have been at their house for tea time since you were little along with that colourful Featherington girl.” Aunt Laura waved her hand dismissingly at the two of you and concentrated about her food.

“Her name is Penelope.” Emily mumbled to her food and you sensed there was something about the girl that your cousin and aunt didn’t agree on. You didn’t know what Aunt Laura meant about colourful, but you guessed you would find out when you got to the afternoon tea.

“Mrs. Greaves will be here soon. I asked if she could come before lunch today, now that you are both occupied in the afternoon. It’s an unspeakable time to get here, but we need to get you ready to dance with all the gentlemen.” Your aunt went on again and you looked to your cousin that already looked as tired as you felt. You muttered an ‘I’m sorry’ to her and she gave you a smile back to tell you that it was fine.

When you had finally escaped Mrs. Greaves and her dance lessons, you were almost waddling to the Bridgerton house arm in arm with Emily. It was even worse than usual, since Mr. Davies hadn’t had the time to come and play for you, so you had danced in silence and Mrs. Greaves yelling at you from time to time.

“You are going to love Lady Bridgerton. I have been friends with Eloise as far back as I remember and has been theorizing the household since I could walk. They are eight siblings and they all look very much alike but their personalities couldn’t be more different.”

“Eight siblings? I can’t even imagine growing up with one.” You exclaimed and your cousin agreed. You didn’t visit your family in London every year growing up, so you were sure your cousin actually knew this Bridgerton family better then she might know you and your father. It also made you wonder how well she might know Anthony.

“So… Anthony Bridgerton is the oldest I gather?” You asked. Your cousin side eyed you and smiled.

“Yes. Anthony is the oldest and is the Viscount. The late Lord Bridgerton died when he was only 18 years old. No one really knows what happened. I only heard that Anthony was there. Eloise doesn’t talk about it at all. I don’t know if she actually know what happened.” So their father died tragically like yours. What a coincidence that was. But Anthony did sound sincere when he spoke to you about your father the day before. He knew exactly what you were going through.

“Anthony then became the Viscount the same year as the youngest of his siblings were born. Poor Hyacinth never met her father and Gregory doesn’t remember him at all.” You blinked a few times while absorbing the information. To think that the youngest didn’t even get to meet her father. You couldn’t decide if that was a blessing or a curse. Because if you hadn’t known your father, the pain of losing him wouldn’t be so hard to bear. But on the other hand, you wouldn’t change the time with your father for anything in the world. You focused on Emily talking to stop yourself from crying. You think she noticed that, because she continued more cheerfully.

“Did you know they are named after the alphabet? It’s Anthony first. Then Benedict, Colin, Daphnie who got married a few years ago, Eloise, Francesca, Gregory and lastly Hyacinth.” You stopped outside the Bridgerton house and looked up and the beautiful façade, which were decorated with ranks of flowers that were soon to bloom. The purple buds would be beautiful purple flowers in the weeks to come.

“How strange.” You stated and your cousin laughed a little.

“Come on. We have to get in before Lady Bridgerton will be worried and send out Gregory to fetch us.”

“Emily it is good to see you! It is not much we have seen you the last few weeks.” Violet Bridgerton was a beautiful woman and you then knew why Anthony has so handsome. Another few brown-haired children sat in the sofas in the tea room and they all resampled their mother. Violet gave your cousin a quick hug and a kiss on each cheek. She then turned to you and gave you the biggest smile.

“And you must be y/n Bradley. It is nice to finally meet you.” She was respectful and didn’t go in for a hug and you curtsied for her.

“Lady Bridgerton. It was so kind of you to invite me to tea.”

“I eventually had to meet Emily’s cousin. Laura has had you locked up in that house since my Anthony told me of your arrival.” Emily had already taken a seat next to who you assumed were Eloise. Just by looking at her, you knew you already liked her. She was not sitting as tall as the other kids and had a book in her lap. Her hair was not fashionably long, just like yours, and had let it hang.

“Oh yeah. I met the Viscount the day I arrived.” You were quick to say. You didn’t know how much Anthony might have told his mother, but your last meeting was anything but appropriate.

“He visited us in our ballroom when we practiced dancing. He was messing with old Mrs. Greaves. It was quite fun actually.” Your cousin said and Eloise lightened up.

“You never told me that? What did he say? Did the old hag get mad?”

“Eloise! Remember your manners.” Lady Bridgerton said and showed you to the sofas so you could sit down.

“Hello, I’m Francesca. Don’t listen to Eloise. We sometimes debate if we should even let her out in society.” The younger girl next to you said. Eloise blew her a raspberry and they both got a stern glare from their mother.

“Do you take your tea white or black?” She asked and changed the topic. She had already made Emily’s tea, which just proved that she did really visit the Bridgertons often enough, that Lady Bridgerton didn’t have to ask her how she took her tea.

“Black, please. With a bit of sugar.” Lady Bridgerton poured your tea and handed it to you.

“Thank you, Lady Bridgerton.” You said politely.

“Oh do call me Violet. We are in our private rooms and we don’t need all those formalities. I hope it is okay that I call you y/n as well?” She asked so sincerely. You blinked a few times as they were against everything that Mrs. Greaves had taught you in your quick lessons about being among the ton.

“Of course.” You said, just as you saw a flash of yellow walk quickly through the doors.

“I am so sorry I was late. My mother had to finish a monolog.” You watched as a red haired girl with a very yellow dressed sat down next to Violet and Violet quickly poured her a cup of tea as well. The girl was breathing hard like she almost must have run to the house. By the look of her, she must be the colourful Penelope that your aunt was talking about. The girl finally caught sight of you and her eyes widened.

“Oh I am so sorry. I am very impolite. I didn’t see there was anyone new here.” Her very direct comment made Eloise chuckled and your cousin soon joined in.

“We invited y/n Bradley with us today.” Violet explained.

“She is my cousin that lived with us now.” Emily furthered.

“Oh. You did mention that. It is nice to finally meet you.” Penelope said and sipped her tea.

“You all sound like I have been imprisoned by my aunt. I swear it hasn’t been as bad as it sound.” You giggled.

“Didn’t you say you had spent the last weeks with Mrs. Greaves? I remember when she was my teacher...” Eloise started, but Violet gave her a look than made her stop and look down in her tea.

“So, y/n. How are you finding London? It is always so exciting when it is spring and people start to move to their city estates. We always get her early and only spend Christmas in the countryside.” Violet talked excitingly, while the rest of you started to grab the biscuits that were set up on the tea table.

“I’ve visited the city many times before but it was more like a tourist. It really something else when you have to live here, because we haven’t really visited the parliament or Saint Pauls Cathedral. I have only visited the modiste a few times to alter some dresses she has made for the upcoming season.”

“Oh you weren’t really kidding when you said you had a lot of lessons.” Violet said perplexed. She looked like she wanted to say something more, but stopped herself.

“Emily said you have been traveling a lot. I really wished I could have done the same. There are so many places I want to visit.” Eloise said dreamily. She clutched her book to her chest.

“Traveling is not something for young women like you, sister.” From the door came another Bridgerton with the course directly to the plate of biscuits.

“I don’t think you heard what we were talking about because y/n has exactly been traveling her whole like.” Eloise gave him again. The brown-haired man with green eyes had filled his mouth to the brim. His eyes landed on you and he quickly covered his mouth so you couldn’t see the sorry remains of the biscuits. He quickly recovered and nodded at you.

“Y/n is Emily’s cousin. She has travelled around Europe with her father and I’m sure she has seen more places than you brother.” Eloise continued.

“I see. Did you enjoy your travels, miss Bradley? I have recently visited Greece and…”

“Colin, we already heard that story. Five times.” Eloise complained.

“Eloise. Let him speak.” Penelope defended but Colin held up his hand.

“It is okay Pen, I know when my company isn’t wanted.” He said teasingly.

“Colin sit down with us. I can call for some more biscuits.” Violet said and immediately called for a footman.

“Make that sandwiches too and you can count on my brilliant company for the remaining of the afternoon.” Colin said and sat down in an empty chair. You were running out of room around the tea table but the conversations between the Bridgertons were pure entertainment. Colin looked so much like his older brother and you couldn’t stop staring at him. He felt much younger but it was hard to tell how much younger he actually was. Maybe it was the responsibility that had grown on Anthony that made him seem more mature. You could only imagine how big of a responsibility it must be when you had to take care of 7 siblings and your own mother.

Eloise and Emily were telling a story about something they saw when they were sneaking away from a ball, while Violet just shook her head of them. You picked up your saucer and cup to take a sip of your tea, when you looked up and by accident looked out of the half closed door and out in the hallway. And there he stood, the man who had constantly been sneaking into your mind. Anthony Bridgerton stood leaning a bit forward and glanced at the tea party. You caught his eyes and he looked a little startled at first but then he smiled. He glanced down at the cup in your hand and made a gesture with his hand, like he was holding an invisible cup himself. Was he making fun of you? But then he smirked and extended his pinky finger and wiggled it like it was a signal. You squinted to show your confusion but he just raised an eyebrow at you and nodded. You looked down at your own cup of tea again and realised you weren’t sticking out your finger. You glanced around and saw the rest of the ladies doing exactly that. You hurried and did the same and looked up to the door and saw that Anthony was gone again. But he had helped you. It was a small thing, but it was something you wouldn’t have thought of yourself. You felt blush and you looked around to the others again, to see if any of them had noticed anything but Eloise and Emily were still talking and the rest looked like they were eagerly listening besides…

You looked to Colin that was looking between you and the door with a raised eyebrow. Your eyes widened but you pretended like nothing and took a sip of your tea. With your pinky extended.

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“Your uncle and aunt want to see you at breakfast, so they sent me to wake you up. I will be the one to wake you, until they hire a new ladies maid for you.” She explained. You sat up in the bed and watched her move around the room. She went to the washstand and poured the steaming hot water in the wash basin.

“I put out some of the clothing you brought. I can help you if you would like?” She pointed to a pile of folded clothing next to a highly decorated folding screen. There was more stuff in your new room alone than there was in your last apartment you shared with your father. Thinking of him made you sad again and you looked down in the duvet, so that the maid would see that you were starting to tear up again.

“I’ll do it myself. Thank you.” You mumbled, but the maid heard you and curtsied before leaving your room. You finally threw the duvet to the side and let yourself glide down from the impressive tall bed. You had never had a bed that you had to step down from. You hadn’t visited your family much for a long time and you only remember it from when you were little. Everything seemed big back then, but you thought it was just because you were little. Guess you were wrong.

You bathed and put on your clothing before looking yourself in the mirror. You had cried yourself to sleep yesterday like you had done every night since your father’s death, so your eyes looked poofy and red. You headed downstairs to the small dining hall that was used when only family was gathered. You knew they had a bigger room for when they had guests, but it wasn’t one you had been in much beside when you played hide and seek with your cousin.

Your uncle sad at the end of the table with a newspaper spread out in front of him. Lucky for them all, the table was so big. On each side of him say your aunt and Emily. Another plate was set next to your cousin and you were surprised when a footman came and pulled out the chair for you. There was a lot to get used to.

“Good morning, dear. I hope you slept well. How do you find the room?” You aunt said cheerful between sipping her tea.

“The bed is very comfortable and the room is splendid. Thank you.” You replied. The moment after came more than one plate flying pass your head. The footmen came with sausages, eggs, bread, scones and even more food that you couldn’t possibly get through.

“Is all of that for me?” You asked with wide eyes.

“Oh yes, we didn’t know what you liked, so we just asked the kitchen for a bit of everything. Just let them know what you like, so they know what to make for you tomorrow.” Your aunt explained and your uncle gave a grunt like he agreed with her. You took a bit on everything on your plate. You weren’t that hungry, but you felt bad for the people who had to prepare all that food, if you didn’t at least try it.

“The modiste will arrive half pass eleven. We need to get both of you some dresses for all the different occasions in the upcoming season. You are going to have such a lovely time here in London, y/n.” Your aunt practically jumped up and down in her chair as she stared at you and your cousin.  Emily hadn’t said anything the whole time and just looked concentrated about her food. She must be used to her mother just rambling on and not needing a lot of response from others to keep a conversation going.

“Thank you, aunt Laura. It is very kind of you.” You answered but your aunt was almost speaking over you as she continued.

“Can you imagine it, Albert? Our Emily and y/n both waltzing with eligible gentlemen in the newest of fashion. I do hope Madame Delacroix have some new designs with her. It can’t only be the newst colours. Dom’t you think the French silk would be the best choice, dear?” Lord Bradley mumbled something behind his newspaper as an answer, but you were almost choking on a piece of bread.

“Waltzing?!” You coughed out and a footman quickly came to your aid and poured a glass of lemonade. You drank it in a very unladylike manner.

“You prefer Quadrille?” Your aunt looked at you stunned while you downed almost the whole glass.

“I don’t dance.”

“What do you mean, you don’t dance?” She asked in horror.

“I never learned how to dance. I’ve never needed it.” You defended. She held her hand over her heart, like she had just hurt the most absurd thing. Maybe she had.

“Dear child! Did you never have a teacher?”

“Only my father. He taught me how to read and write in five different languages.” The sadness overwhelmed you again when you thought of him. Your father had learned all the languages along the way when you travelled around Europe and taught you afterwards. You had all the books you wanted at your disposal, because your father practically made them for a living.

“Albert!” Your aunt exclaimed and your uncle almost threw the newspaper across the table and tumbled his nearly empty teacup. For a moment he looked quite grumpy behind the moustache but he looked at his wife with patience.

“We need to find a teacher for the girl! She can’t go into the season without being able to dance!” She stood up from the table and was on her way out in a hurry, but turned in the door.

“Emily, what was the name of your old teacher again?”

“Oh no mama, not Mrs. Greaves!” Your cousin exclaimed.

“Mrs. Greaves! Thank you dear. I will call for immediately. “ And Lady Bradley was out the door. All three of you stared after her until Lord Bradley cleared his throat.

“Do you at least play any instruments?”

“No, I’m sorry.” You said quietly. You looked down in the table. This was humiliating. You knew you hadn’t had the most ideal childhood with all the traveling, but you didn’t know there was so much you needed to know and be able to do, just because you had to attend a party.

Your uncle let out a heavy breath.

“It is okay. There is still time to learn. I’m sure Emily can help you as she had lessons since she was five.” Since she was five?! How should you possibly learn everything that she had learned when you only had a month?  

“Oh yes! I can be your dance partner. That would be so much fun!” Emily said and reached out and took your hand in hers. You smiled at each other. You had really missed her when you were out traveling and now that you are finally in the Bradley house again, you were looking at a real lady and not the girl your cousin once were. She had grown so beautiful and had even been out in society for a year. It was hard to imagine her being married and being somewhere else than in this house. But at the same time she was so beautiful and intelligent that you couldn’t imagine why she wasn’t already married.

“The ball room are yours for practicing until the season starts. We will get the pianoforte moved in there too. Maybe you can find some time to try that as well.” Lord Bradley stood up and walked over to you. He took your free hand in his and gave it a little squeeze. He gave you a sad smile that made his moustache lift in the sides. He was just as you remembered him from those years ago.

“I’m sorry for all of this. I wish I could have been there with you in Germany, but I will give you everything that I have given my own daughter. If there is anything, you can come to me. I might not be as understanding and take on the world with open arms as my little brother. But let me at least try.”  He bent down and kissed your knuckles.

“Thank you, uncle. Truly. I will do my best to learn. For you.” You squeezed his hand back.

“No, do it for yourself.” He answered. He let go of your hand, gave Emily’s shoulder a short pad and left the dining room.

“Did you hear? Mama said that I had to cancel all of my plans for the afternoons, so that I can be with you and Mrs. Greaves. Isn’t it lovely?” You walked arm in arm with your cousin towards the ball room. The servants had been kept busy with cleaning and dusting the room. It hadn’t been used for almost half a year, since the last season. Normally they would have had weeks to do it, but this unexpected turn of event gave them extra work. You felt bad when you saw them still in the room when you stepped inside.

“Lovely? You don’t want to go out for tea?” You asked curiously.

“God no. I don’t like half of the girls that my mom arranged for me to spend time with. But most of them have brothers that might join for tea. If those brothers have any sense, they would stay away from all the crazy mamas and their daughters. My mother makes more men flee than any other.” You both chuckled. It didn’t surprise you at all.

“I knew there must be a reason why you weren’t already married. You are too beautiful for them not to notice you.” You confessed and Emily actually blushed.

“Well, the two of us look very much alike, you know.” You knew it was a compliment, but you didn’t see it much. Indeed you get some of the same features and were around the same height. But you were much rougher around the edges, carried yourself in a different way, and had too short hair for it to be fashionable. Either way, even Lord Bridgerton mentioned that the two of you looking alike. That thought alone made you blush too. You took a deep breath and shook the thoughts out of your head. You had to focus on the ball room and the dancing.

You found yourself in a beautiful and highly decorated room with high ceiling. A dozen of chandeliers hang from the ceiling and in the night they would cast a cosy light over the whole room. But in the day time the room was lit up by the big windows that led out to the terrace and the garden.

In the opposite end of the room was a little platform that worked as a scene for the musicians for the balls. In the middle of it was placed a huge white pianoforte. You didn’t get to admire it much, because in front of stood a woman and commanded a small elderly man around. He stood with music sheets in his hands and it sounded like they were discussing music.

“Nice to see you again Mrs. Greaves.” Emily said when you reached the pair. It was obviously to distract Mrs. Greaves from the elderly man and give him peace for a moment. He looked distressed but let out a little sigh, when the woman looked away from him.

“Emily Bradley. Lovely to see you again as always. I hope you are keeping up with your practice when I’m not here anymore?” Mrs. Greaves raised an eyebrow as she looked over your cousin. She looked exactly like you imagined the moment Emily said ‘oh no’ when the woman’s name was mentioned. Her hair was in the tightest bun you had ever seen and she leaned on a wooden cane. Her clothing was long out of fashion and in dark colours, like she was grieving. Maybe she was? Because her face looked like it would be unable to be pulled into a smile.

“I am here now, am I not?” Your cousin mused. Mrs. Greaves sighed and then looked to you.

“And you must be the older miss Bradley.” She said to you and really looked you up and down. You were wearing one of your cousin’s dresses, as yours hasn’t arrived yet. You were wondering if people could it wasn’t yours.

“Only older with a few years.” You answered under her gaze.

“And I hear you never learned how to behave in a ball room.” She started to circle you.

“Yes. Mrs.”

“How come?”

“I never had the need for it.” You simply said and Mrs. Greaves tsked.

“There is always a need to learn how to behave yourself in polite company. Music!” The older woman called out and the man behind her stirred and almost ran to the pianoforte. Mrs Greaves placed your cousin in the place of the man and used her cane to kick your legs in the direction you needed to go. It didn’t go much better for Emily, as she wasn’t used to leading. The music from the pianoforte was almost drowned in Mrs Greaves shouting one, two, three, one, two three. After an hour you felt pretty secures in the waltz, as it was fairly simple. In the end you and Emily was laughing while twirling each other around, ignoring every time Mrs. Greaves told you to stay focused and take it serious. Your laugher must have echoed out in the hallway, because soon you heard your uncles laugh from the door. You stopped spinning around and the music died out. You shook your head as you felt a little dizzy now that you were standing still.

“Very good, both of you.” Your uncle said. And when you finally focused your gaze towards the door, you noticed that he wasn’t alone. Behind him walked three other men, one of them being the Viscount, who had saved you from being tumbled by a horse. The men were all of different ages but they all looked well dressed and somehow very important.

“I didn’t know we had guests.” Said Emily. She was blushing from ear to ear.

“We decided to have the meeting in my office, but we couldn’t help going towards the sound of you two practicing and having a laugh.” He explained and the other men nodded in agreement. You caught the eyes of Viscount Bridgerton, who seemed amused by their little discovery of the two of you.

“What were you practicing, if I may ask?” He suddenly addressed you directly and the other men seemed surprised. You had never been formally introduced, but the Viscount seemed to have forgotten that.

“We were waltzing, my lord. But since you had to ask, we might not have been very good at it.” You said grinning. Emily made a sound next to you, like she tried to stifle a laugh. Suddenly Mrs Greaves cane hit you on the upper arm and you gasped.

“We are not smiling with the teeth.” She corrected you and you frowned at her.

“I see your methods haven’t changed much since you taught my sister, Mrs. Greaves?” The Viscount said very loudly. It made the woman put her nose in the air like she was offended.

“My methods works. Your sister learned well and married well, did she not?”

“I’m sure you can teach manners well enough, without using the cane.” He challenged and you were baffled. You knew this was a man of a title, but you hadn’t imagined anyone of any rank go against a woman like Mrs. Greaves. Emily looked as shocked as you. You waited for the elderly woman to respond or even go after him with the cane, but she just stared at him for a moment before she laughed a very throaty laugh.

“I see that you never change, Anthony Bridgerton. You are always challenging me, just like when you were a kid.” She walked up to him and padded him on the arm. It was strange to see her being so familiar with the Viscount. But she must have been in the Bridgerton household as much as she must have been with the Bradleys. She also just revealed the viscounts name. Anthony.

“I think it is enough for today. I will be back tomorrow and we will continue where we left off.” She pointed at you with her cane before walking off. You uncle looked after Mrs. Greaves and shook his head.

“She will always be one of a kind.” He said to the others and all three men nodded like they knew the woman well. How odd. She must have some kind of reputation in the whole of London. She can’t possible have had the time to teach every young lady in town.

“Thank for saving me… Again.” You suddenly hear yourself say and you didn’t know why you would ever say such things in front of all these people. It was not like you had any form of relationship with him. The viscount, Anthony, raised his eyebrows at you comment and looked stunned as well but nodded.

“And I would do it again. Shall we?” The last comment was for the men and they left the ball room before you could even get to react to what he just said. Before anyone could react to what he just said.

People were walking around you, not noticing you at all. One man came running down the platform and almost fell over one of your suitcases. He hissed something at you as he continued running away and you started to hiccup. This was unbearable. No one cared about the crying girl standing among the strangers.

“Oh my dear girl!” You finally heard and you sighed hard. The sound of your aunt’s voice was like a light in the darkness that was consuming you, as you were left along with only the thoughts of your deceased father. The woman’s body hit you like a force and she threw her arms around you and held you there. You let out a sob into her shoulder and she tried to calm you down by stroking your hair.

“Oh no, y/n. I’m so so sorry.” You heard your cousin Emily say behind her mother but you didn’t look up. You didn’t want to leave your aunts arms before she let go herself. She eventually looked down at you with sad eyes and dried away the tears from your face.

“This must be so hard for you, my friend. We need to get you home.” Home. Home wasn’t in the middle of London. Home used to be wherever your father was. You were born in France but never lived there for long. Your mother died from the scarlet fever when you were only a few years old, so you didn’t remember much of her. After that you travelled around Europe with your father, as he worked in many different cities for a lot of different people. You father was the second born to a lord title, which meant not a lot of money to inherit but at the same time no responsibilities. He had met your mother on his way through Europe and he ended up staying in France longer than intended. He had always been fascinated by printing and eventually he opened a print shop in Paris. But the moment your mother died he didn’t want to stay any longer. He was a traveling expert in the Gutenberg Press and was hired to fix the machines and help with big workloads. Your whole life was in a suitcase – or five – and every memory of your childhood smelled like freshly printed newspapers and ink.

But his passion about the big machines also became his death. You were glad you weren’t there, because you know your father died at work but you could only imagine how gruesome it must have been when it happened. You would never recover from the loose of your parent but you couldn’t imagine how traumatising it would have been to watch it too. He got buried the Germany city Mainz, ironically the city where Gutenberg invented the first printing equipment. Your father loved the city and you had taken many walks along the river together. You had been with him at work so many times and even helped him with smaller tasks. You still had black ink spots on your fingers as you stood clutching your aunt’s coat.

“Let’s move out of the way. Let my men take your belongings.” Your Uncle, Lord Bradley said and two men stepped forward and started to carry your suitcase away from the platform. Lord Brandley was your fathers older brother and he was the completely opposite of your father. While you father was skinny, clean shaved beside his sideburns and was very adventures, Lord Brandley was sporting a round belly, a huge moustache and was deeply rooted in the British soil. As far as you knew, he had never left the country. Not even for university.

Your aunt tugged you along as you followed the rest of the family out to a carriage. Your uncle’s servants were tying your suitcases fast to the back and made the horses ready for the trip to your new home. You let your aunt drag you into the carriage and she held onto your hand.

“Everything is going to be alright, my friend. We have prepared a room for you and the dressmaker will come tomorrow so we can make you some proper clothing for the London season.”

“The what?” You asked, drying your eyes with the back of your free hand. Your aunt scrawled at your ink spotted hand and found a handkerchief for you, in the little handback she carried with her everywhere.

“The social season, of course. It is spring and people are starting to move into their city homes and will have their annual balls. You are a little old for a debutant but I’m sure we can make it work.” She patted your hand as to reassure you.

“A little old? I’m only 21.” You said with a frown. Your cousin gave you a sympathetic look from the other side of the carriage. Lord Bradley said nothing.

“Emily debuted when she was only 17. I must admit that we should have waited a year longer, but there is no time to waste. There seem to less eligible gentlemen every year.” You could feel that this was a course that your aunt felt strongly about. She went from understanding family member to a desperate mother hen in no time. It surprised you so much, that you didn’t know how to reach to it. You were grieving your father. You just had your whole life turned upside down and your aunt was talking about putting you in a fancy dress and throwing you at men? The carriage suddenly seemed too small for 4 people and your heart started beating faster. You needed to clear your head. This was not what you wanted. You loved your family, but this was not what you needed. You were not meant to be in fancy silk dresses and walk around gossiping about others.

“Can we stop the carriage?” You suddenly gasped. You hadn’t realised that you had stopped breathing, until it was too hard for you to do so. They all looked at you concerned but didn’t say anything.

“Stop the carriage!” You yelled out and the coachman heard you. The carriage was halted with a sudden pull, so that your uncle and cousin almost fell from the seat. You opened the door to the carriage and you heard your family yell behind you but you didn’t stop. You hadn’t noticed that you had jumped out in the wrong side and stood now in the middle of the busy road. At least a dozen other carriages were between you and the sidewalk – or at least it felt like that. You just ran. You bolted between the horses that were forced to stop. Your uncle was yelling behind you but you ran. Down the street. More horses. More carriages. More people. This was not what you wanted. This was not what your father wanted for you. This…

You looked a horse straight in the eyes as it rose to its hind legs right in front of you.

“Look out!” Someone shouted as you were pulled to the side by your upper arm. You stumbled and were sure you were about to fall in the middle of the busy road, but someone held you up.

“What were you thinking?” The manly voice said angrily and you looked to the man who rescued you from being tackled by a frightened horse. He was elegantly dressed, even if it was just a walking attire. His brown hair sat perfectly combed back and his handsome face was set in a scowl. He was still gripping your arm hard but when he was looking into your frighten face, he softened up a bit.

“What were you doing in the middle of the road?” He asked. He finally let go of you and found a handkerchief for you that was tugged into the breast pocket of his jacket. You touched your face and realised that you were still crying and you must have looked awful.

“I think I got lost.” You said, because you didn’t want to explain to this stranger how you just jumped out of a carriage. He would think you mad.

“You don’t… know where you are?” He asked a little hesitant. He looked you up and down, clearly trying to figure out where you might belong. You were simple dressed. Not the cheapest fabrics but at the same time you weren’t sporting the newest colours of the season. You had never really cared about how you dressed, as the dresses had always just been and hindrance for you, when you were working with your father. But he always insisted on you dressing properly, as a lady. Lucky for you, he knew even less about proper attire than you, so beside the cut and the length of the dress, you had been able to request some more practical dresses, than what might be fashionable.

You shook your head at the strangers question and he looked around until he saw a street sign and pointed to it.

“We are only a few streets from Green Park. Do you know where to go from here?” He asked patiently.

“No, I’m sorry sir.” You said, while trying to dry your eyes with his handkerchief, but tears kept falling. It was so embarrassing.

“Where are you going then, miss? Maybe I can point you in the right direction.” He said politely. And your aunt said there weren’t a lot of gentlemen left in this city. This man didn’t even know you and he just saved you from the busy street and wanted to help get home. It was quite touching.

“I’m… I’m heading to Lord Bradley’s city house.” You stammered. This made the stranger raise his eyebrows.

“You know Lord Bradley, miss?”

“He is my uncle.” You said plainly. You didn’t know much of what your uncle did, but it looked like the young man knew your uncle.

“I’m sorry miss Bradley, I didn’t know. I should have known. You and your cousin look so much alike. If you will, I can escort you to his home?” He reached out an arm for you and you started at it for a moment, before linking your arm in his.

“You really don’t have to.” You mumbled but cleared your throat. It wasn’t polite to mumble.

“I know the Lord very well. I’m sure he will only be happy that I see you home safely.” He started to lead you down the sidewalk and every now and then you dried your eyes with his handkerchief. You had walk for a bit when he finally spoke up again.

“May I ask… What made you so upset?” You looked at him. He looked back at you with concern in his eyes and you wished you could stop the tears. You just didn’t know how. But with the very unconventional situation you found yourself in, you felt that you needed to explain yourself.

“I recently lost my father.” You said and took a deep breath. It was so painful to say it out loud, that you really had to concentrate to not starting to bowl in from of this kind gentleman.

“I am sorry to hear that. My condolences for your loss.” He said with a nod. He didn’t ask any more questions and you were grateful for that.

“Thank you. It was very sudden. I am lucky to have my uncle and aunt. They have been so kind to take me in.”

“Your uncle is a great man. I can only imagine your cousin must only be happy to have another girl in the house. Oh, speaking of your cousin.” The man said and gestured down the street. Your cousin came running towards you as fast as her dress would let her.

“Oh y/n!” She said as she came close and she threw her arms around you. You let yourself fall into your cousin as well. You had acted most preposterous in your sorrow. It was reckless to just jump out of the carriage like that, but you had almost calmed down on the short walk to your family’s home.

Your cousin let go of you again and curtsied in front of your rescuer.

“Viscount Bridgerton. I see you have met my cousin. Thank you for bringing her home.” Your cousin Emily was blushing from ear to ear and a small smile played on her lips. You just stood gaping at the gentleman. He was a viscount? You had let him drag you along with him and you hadn’t even had the decency to ask him about his name or even tell him yours.

“It was my pleasure. It seems like she was lost and couldn’t find her way around Mayfair.” Lord Bridgerton gave you a smile and you understood perfectly well why your cousin was all red faced, when that smile was directed towards her.

“Lost? Oh! Yes she got separated from us when my papa stopped to speak with an acquaintance.” Your cousin was lying as she took your hand. The viscount looked around her at the carriage that was parked right outside your house. Your bags were being taken off the back and carried in by the footmen. You didn’t hope he was thinking the same as yourself. It wouldn’t make sense that you got separated from your family, if they just arrived in the carriage. You tried your best to smile at him, but it seemed like an impossible task. You were so nervous.

“It happens.” He shrugged and again let his eyes meet yours. “I hope to see you again sometimes, miss Bradley. Miss Bradley.” He nodded at you and your cousin and was on his way again. You followed your cousin towards the house but you couldn’t stop looking behind you. The viscount crossed the street.

“He was so kind to follow me all the way here. I told him he didn’t have to.” You felt like you had to explain to your cousin why you suddenly showed up with a viscount, after jumping out of a carriage and leaving her behind.